Her eyes begin to water, and Ray hands her a handkerchief from his pocket. “You remember,” she says quietly.
“The woods healed me, Mama, but I don’t know if I’m ready for what Rachel has put into motion.” I let my gaze roam over what I’ve created here. “I’m scared.”
She tugs me into her arms. “Don’t you worry, honey. You have nothing to be scared of.”
I wish that were true.
“I see the hurt I caused you. I don’t want to do that to Jackson. Right now, in this very moment, my son loves me. I’m still his angel mom. If you tell him, I’ll just be a crazy woman who’s been hiding in the woods. He’ll never understand, Mama. That terrifies me.”
“I think you’d be surprised by how much Jackson might understand your exact situation. Life unfolds itself in funny ways.”
She chuckles to herself and cradles my face. She’s still the same optimistic woman I remember from my youth.
“But we’ll figure all this out later. There’s no hurry. How about you and I get to know each other again? Let’s start there.”
“Okay,” I whisper against her soft cheek, hugging her tight.
Chapter Fifteen
Daisy
When Brody came home last night, he didn’t say much. I didn’t ask him to. He just crawled into bed and wrapped his arms around me.
He explained everything this morning, and now the three of us are on the way to see Jackson’s biological mother. Now I understand what Lexie was talking about when she handed me that letter on the beach. This is definitely going to shake the club.
“Are you going to tell Jackson?” I ask, reaching behind me to hand Jack another cracker. I cannot keep this kid full.
“Well, I guess that’s up to Maggie, but I want to give my two cents. Rachel gave me the first letter. She wanted me to meet Jackson’s mom. She trusted me with the decision.”
My husband rubs his forehead.
“Why do you think she chose you?”
He stares at the road. “I thought it was because Jackson’s like a brother to me, but on the way home last night I came to anotherconclusion. I think it’s because I can relate. My mom was killed in a car accident when I was just a baby.”
I reach over and rub his leg. “You think she thought you would put yourself in Jackson’s shoes?”
He looks at me and then back at the road. “That’s exactly what I did. I would do anything to have my mom here with me.” My husband looks at our son in the rear-view mirror. “I would love to see my mom with Jack.”
“Even if she hid from you for your entire life?”
“She had her reasons, and I think Jackson will understand. I’m not saying there won’t be bumps in the road, but in the end, I think it will be worth the journey. It’s obvious she loves him, so they at least have a smooth foundation. If it doesn’t work out, what’s the worst that can happen? They both go their separate ways.”
“What’s she like?” I ask, excited to meet this woman.
His smile widens. “Not going to lie. She’s pretty cool. She’s like, I don’t know, one of those wise women who lives in the woods and talks to fairies and shit.”
I laugh.
“You’re going to love it,” he says, pulling off to the side of the road. “We’ll have to walk from here.”
He takes the diaper bag from me as I unbuckle Jack.
“We have to hop the fence too.”
I look over my shoulder. “You could have mentioned that sooner. Everyone’s going to see my undies.”
The grin on his face makes me blush. “You know that’s my favorite dress. No way was I letting you take it off. Besides, there’s no one out here to see but me.”
